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Brisket confit

Confit of Beef Brisket Recipe with Goat Cheese Polenta

Martin
Slow-cooked brisket with rich goat-cheese polenta underneath. 
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Ingredients
  

For the brisket confit:

  • 3 lb brisket flat cut into 2" cubes
  • 4 tsp kosher salt
  • 1 tsp black pepper
  • ½ tsp allspice
  • 1/4 tsp ground mace
  • 5 good sprigs fresh thyme
  • ¼ tsp paprika smoked, if you like
  • 4 bay leaves crumbled
  • 4 cloves garlic crushed and roughly chopped
  • enough light olive oil or rendered fat to cover the meat about 1 1/2 quarts—we used rendered brisket fat

For polenta:

  • 1/2 cup dried polenta or cornmeal
  • 1 1/2 cups water
  • 1/2 cup half-and-half
  • 4 oz fresh goat cheese chevre
  • 1 Tbsp butter
  • 2 tsp fresh minced parsley
  • Salt to taste

Instructions
 

Day before cooking:

    • Cut brisket into short-rib sized chunks—about 2" square.
    • Combine salt and dried spices. Toss spice mixture, garlic, fresh thyme, and bay leaves together with beef.
    • Place in refrigerator uncovered overnight to cure.

    Day of cooking:

      Make the confit

      • Preheat your oven to 225°F (107°C).
      • Lightly rinse the excess salt and spices off the meat, reserving the bay leaves, thyme sprigs, and garlic to add to the oil with the meat.
      • Heat the oil/fat in a sauté pan or dutch oven large enough to hold the meat comfortably.
      • Heat the oil to 200°F (93°C) (verified on your ChefAlarm or with your Thermapen ONE.)
      • Add the meat to the oil. If, after all the meat is added, the oil doesn't cover the meat, add more fat or oil until the meat is submerged.
      • Insert a probe into one of the largest pieces of meat, using a pot clip to keep the probe from falling into the hot oil. 
      • Adding meat to the oil will make the temperature drop dramatically. Heat it some more to bring it back up to 200°F (93°C).
      • Place the pot in the oven, running the probe cord out the door to your ChefAlarm. 
      • Set the high-temp alarm on your Chef Alarm for 203°F (95°C). Cook. 
      • When the alarm sounds, set a timer for 3 hours. Check the tenderness after that timer sounds. 
      • If tender, remove the pot from the oven, otherwise cook for another half hour and check again. 
      • Either let the pot cool, covered, on the counter, until it can be stored in the refrigerator, or serve the meat right away. 
      • Before serving the meat, brown the cubes in some of the reserved fat in a pan. 

      To make the polenta:

      • When the confit is nearly finished, combine the half-and-half, salt, and water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil. 
      • Add the cornmeal while whisking. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring often.
      • When the polenta thickens, turn down the heat and continue to stir, scraping the edges and bottom of the pan.
      • When the polenta is thick and starts to pull away from the edge of the pan, turn off the heat.
      • Add the goat cheese and the parsley and stir to combine.
      • Add the butter and stir to combine. This will give the polenta a nice glossy sheen.
      • Serve the confit on a bed of polenta, and rejoice in the warmth of cold-weather food.